These scrapped Disney and Pixar storylines are blowing fans' minds

Disney and Pixar are responsible for some of the best-known animated movies around. But just how different could the plots of those films have been? Twitter has seen a flurry of debate as fans digest a list of scrapped plot ideas from films ranging from classics like The Lion King and the Little Mermaid to more recent titles Frozen, Up and The Incredibles.

Disney and Pixar have changed plot lines, inverted character's personalities and dropped whole concepts before settling on the final story for many films. The revelations include whole characters that never made it to the final cuts of the films – an aloof and perfectionist Señorita Cactus in Toy Story? A talking turkey with the voice of John Candy as a sidekick for Pocahontas?  (If you're an animator yourself, see our guide to the best drawing tablets for animation in 2021.)

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

TOPICS
Joe Foley

Joe is a regular freelance journalist and editor at Creative Bloq. He writes news, features and buying guides and keeps track of the best equipment and software for creatives, from video editing programs to monitors and accessories. A veteran news writer and photographer, he now works as a project manager at the London and Buenos Aires-based design, production and branding agency Hermana Creatives. There he manages a team of designers, photographers and video editors who specialise in producing visual content and design assets for the hospitality sector. He also dances Argentine tango.

Read more
Logo for Disney Plus
How could Disney dropping DEI affect the future of animation? Tell us what you think
Lilo & Stitch Snow White poster
It's hard to describe how hilarious these Lilo & Stitch Disney mashup posters are (seriously, Stitch as Cinderella is all kinds of genius)
An image from Moana 2
Creatives weigh in on Disney's DEI cancellation
Cartoons of the 1950s - best animated movies of the 50s; A heartwarming animated scene depicts two canine characters sharing a meal of spaghetti and meatballs at a table outdoors.
Cartoons of the 1950s – the best animated movies from Lady and the Tramp to Animal Farm
Key art of the animated film Flow
Best animation Oscar 2025: Disney gets snubbed for the third year in a row
Image from Disney Snow White remake
Disney should own Snow White’s character design backlash
Latest in Movies & TV Shows
Garfield and Kung Fu Panda
Why is every movie trying to look like Dune 2?
The cast of Dune staring intently into the camera
The new Dune: Part Two ad is making me uncomfortable
A screenshot of a movie Easter egg from Pulp Fiction
I never noticed these 9 clever Easter eggs hidden in famous movies
Rogue Trooper movie; uses Unreal Engine 5; a blue faced man in a solider helmet
Duncan Jones' new Rogue Trooper movie will use Unreal Engine 5
Pharrell Williams
Pharrell's Lego biopic is one of the strangest collabs ever
Squaring the circle doc still - man holding photo of cow
3 creative lessons from Netflix's Squaring the Circle
Latest in News
Apple Watch render
Apple's AI Watch concept is already being called a mistake
An image from an AI Tesla Cybertruck ad
Bizarre AI Tesla Cybertruck ad has the internet fooled
St Albans Beer & Cider Festival beer festival logo
Beer festival forced to tweak its logo amid sexism row
Sonic the Hegehog and friends
Sega just made a ridiculous Sonic timeline and (mostly) everyone is delighted
Tesla Cybertrucks in a parking lot
The Tesla Cybertruck design disaster just keeps getting worse
Nintendo Switch 2
An eagle-eyed modder may have found an exciting unannounced Switch 2 feature to rival PS5 Pro